We have either good or bad news for high school students and for their parents: promposals, or elaborate staged events where one teen asks another to the prom, aren’t going away, and have become as much an essential part of the prom-going experience as cummberbunds and corsages. Seeing how popular they are with teens, companies that sell or rent prom clothes have started marketing guides, promoting their brands but also reinforcing elaborate promposals as the norm. [More]

Where in the world could a stolen tuxedo possibly show up? One formalwear store owner seems to have had a detective’s instinct, and managed to spot her pilfered merchandise at a local high school’s prom after someone boosted it from a store mannequin. [More]

Let’s all remove our cynical glasses and view what might be a PR stunt with clear eyes, because heck, while we might not all love the Dallas Cowboys or the name on its stadium, AT&T, doing nice things for people should always be rewarded. Behold, the suddenly bereft students of a Texas high school, in search of a new prom venue after theirs was taken from them. [More]

It’s getting to be back-to-school time for kids all around the country, which means parents everywhere are spending money on clothing and school supplies. But parents with kids entering that last year of schooling should probably want to set aside a few extra bucks, as they face potentially thousands of dollars in additional expenses over the next 9-10 months. [More]

You’ll always remember your high school prom — whether you did or didn’t go, who you went with, what you wore, who ended up puking in the bushes later outside Jack McPopular’s house — and so will your parents. Especially parents these days, as the average price of prom is up for the second straight year at an average of $1,139 per family. Say what now?!?

Prom night offers the youth of America the opportunity to learn a number of lessons — how to fill a flask, the best way to use Visine without being obvious, how to charter a 40-person party bus without getting screwed by scammers. Alas, some teens in Alabama learned that last lesson the hard way.

Who wouldn’t want to start their prom by watching a stretch limo cruise down their street an hour and a half late before crashing into their parent’s car? Apparently a bunch of high school students in Washington state, that’s who. And they’re not the only ones angry that they booked with Blessed Limo. The notorious local operator apparently has a knack for showing up late and then stranding kids at prom. Complaining to state authorities only goes so far because these guys don’t even bother with bureaucratic backaches like “operating licenses.”

The recession continues to rot America’s cultural core, this time by attacking one of our most cherished traditions: prom. Gone are the ice sculptures and $1,000 dresses. America’s children are now buying dresses off racks and trading limos for the family car. Imagine!

Our favorite? “Wardrobing.” This is the retail industry term describing the practice of a consumer wearing a piece of clothing once and returning it; it’s especially common with prom and other special-occasion attire. Yay for girls at a dance with the tag still on the dress. This was probably pretty common at our prom, which we did not attend. Actually, never mind that, the dresses probably still had the security tags on, if you know what we mean. —MEGHANN MARCO